March 25, 2013

NOUNS BEFORE VERBS?




New research agenda could help shed light on early language, cognitive development

Researchers are digging deeper into whether infants’ ability to learn new words is shaped by the particular language being acquired.

A new Northwestern University study cites a promising new research agenda aimed at bringing researchers closer to discovering the impact of different languages on early language and cognitive development.

For decades, researchers have asked why infants learn new nouns more rapidly and more easily than new verbs. Many researchers have asserted that the early advantage for learning nouns over verbs is a universal feature of human language.